In general, in scroll compressors, some sliding parts, such as a rotation-preventing mechanism and a drive bearing that supports a rotary shaft for driving an orbiting scroll, tend to be disposed at positions away from a flow path through which a fluid mixture of refrigerant and lubricant flows.
Therefore, various technologies have been proposed for supplying lubricant together with refrigerant to the above-described drive bearing etc., by forming, in a scroll compressor, an inner-circulation flow path for guiding sucked refrigerant to the drive bearing etc. (for example, see PTLs 1 and 2).
In the above-described technology disclosed in PTL 2, lubrication of the drive bearing etc. is performed by forming grooves (gas communication grooves) extending in the radial directions and disposed at regular intervals on a contact surface between an end plate of an orbiting scroll and a housing for accommodating the orbiting scroll etc.
Specifically, a fluid mixture of refrigerant and lubricant is supplied to the drive bearing etc. through the above-described gas communication grooves.